While all eyes are on the nominees — Brad! Charlize! Renée! Laura Dern! — some of the best Oscar moments happen when the cameras aren’t rolling. Here are a few things you didn’t see on TV.
Brad Pitt references Trump’s impeachment trial — and the room applauds
When Regina King read Brad Pitt’s name as the winner for Best Supporting Actor, the crowd absolutely erupted inside the Dolby Theatre.
Everyone was ready for Pitt to earn his first acting Oscar.
“It’s about time!” one audience member yelled out.
Pitt, the acceptance speech connoisseur this awards season, began his clean sweep on a political note. While he won the coveted statue for Best Supporting Actor, the Once Upon a Time in Hollywood star referenced President Trump’s impeachment trial.
“They told me I only have 45 seconds up here, which is 45 seconds more than the Senate gave John Bolton this week,” he told the A-list audience. “I’m thinking maybe Quentin does a movie about it, in the end, the adults do the right thing.”
The room had a mostly positive reaction to Pitt’s reference to the former national security adviser. There were lots of laughs, huge applause and the inevitable “oohs.” But there were also a few groans as a couple of people visibly squirmed in their seats.
Overall, it landed. However, the crowd seemed to be more into his sweet shout-out to his kids. Pitt received cheers when he thanked his children whom he shares with Angelina Jolie — Maddox, 18; Pax, 16; Zahara, 15; Shiloh, 13; Knox, 11 and Vivienne Jolie-Pitt, 11 — “who color everything I do.”
Backstage, Pitt elaborated on his political statements, saying he “was really disappointed this week” with the results of the Senate impeachment trial, which resulted in President Trump’s acquittal.
“I think when gamesmanship trumps doing the right thing, it’s a sad day and I don’t think we should let it slide,” he said. “And I’m very serious about that.”
Parasite gets the crowd on its feet
It was a big night for Parasite. The crowd reaction to Bong Joon Ho winning Best Original Screenplay was loud — there were actual screams. The audience was back roaring when the South Korean movie won Best International Feature Film and for a final time when it became the first foreign-language film in Oscars history to win Best Picture.
Fun fact: Floor 1 of the Dolby Theatre is where all the stars gather. It’s heavily guarded and unless you’re a nominee, plus one, handler or “working press,” good luck getting through.
That said, celebrities are still flocked to one area that connects the red carpet to the theater. As Natalie Portman entered, women came up and thanked her for her red carpet fashion statement. She was gracious and talked with everyone.
Salma Hayek, Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, Will Ferrell, Spike Lee and basically every celebrity you saw walk the red carpet rushed to their seats through this same area but also had to engage in small talk and selfies. However, the belle of the ball, so to speak, was Keanu Reeves. Yes, the Keanussance is still very much on.
